Introduction




I'm a keen amateur nature photographer who NEVER leaves home without my camera and at least a couple of lenses. My hatred of zoo's and 'staged' photographs means that ALL of my images are taken 'in the field'.

This approach does limit me to what subjects are available to me, but ensures that all of my images are 'natural'. Much of my enjoyment and satisfaction of getting a great shot, comes from the knowledge that I have had to work hard to achieve it. This can include trekking for many miles, in all weathers and spending many hours either in my portable hide, or stealthily getting as close as possible to my subject.

I guess that a good to place to start my blog, is to tell you about the gear that I use. Like many photographers, I started with some very basic equipment and have gradually improved my gear over the years. Having spent the past few years without any gear at all, last year, I decided to 'invest' in a decent set-up specifically for Wildlife and Natural History Photography. I have always hankered after Nikon products and now have the following camera, lenses and accessories:

Camera Body:

Nikon D500  Crop Sensor


Lenses:

Nikon 200-500 f5.6 Telephoto Zoom

Nikon 70-200 f4 Telephoto Zoom

Nikon 18-55 f3.5 Wide Angle Zoom

Tokina 11-20 f2.8 Ultra Wide Angle Zoom 


Accessories:

Gitzo 5561 Carbon Fibre Monopod

Gitzo GT5541LS Carbon Fibre Tripod 

Benbo MK1 Tripod (mainly for Macro Work)

Pop-Up Portable Hide

Raynox DCR150 & DCR250 Macro Adapters

Marumi Ring Flash

Kenko 1.4 300 Pro DGX Teleconverter

Stealth Gear 'Extreme' Jacket & Trousers

'Panoramic Industries' Summer Vest

Lowepro Vertex 300 Camera Bag


It has been a substantial investment, but I can safely say that I have now fullfilled my dream and have all the gear that I am ever likely to need..........OK, I can still dream about a Nikon 400 f2.8 FL ED VR prime lens, but at £12,000, that's going to have to wait for a 'lottery' win!!

Future blogs will cover reviews of the products that I use and of course regular updates of my travels alongside images from the day. In the meantime, here are some images from my visit to Minnis Bay (UK) last week.

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